Journalism students at the Fayetteville-Manlius High School attended the 86th annual Empire State School Press Association (ESSPA) on October 14th 2025. Students partook in three different lecture sessions presented by both college students and professors.

ESSPA is an association that holds yearly conferences that students have the opportunity to attend, in order to educate themselves more about journalism. This conference had many different presentations to choose from, creating a friendly and self-reliant environment for students to thrive. “I really liked how you could pick your own thing to do, it was very independent,” said Kara Evans, a senior at FM High School, who attended this convention for the first time.

ESSPA was noticeably educational and informative. Students who showed up to ESSPA were able to choose their own sessions to learn about different literary elements. This was quite favored among the participants, creating distinguished memories and experiences for the learners. “I thought it was very fun and informative, a great experience. I’m really glad I went,” said Abby Duerr, a sophomore journalism student at FM and another first-time participant at ESSPA.

Through ESSPA, students were able to expand their knowledge on journalism careers and other field-related topics.